Shirley H. Daly

DALY, SHIRLEY H. Ann Arbor, MI Shirley H. Daly, 90, died peacefully on December 4, 2013 at Brookdale Place of Ann Arbor. Shirley was born in Detroit on May 23, 1923 to Robert A. and Rhea (Strickler) Hamburg. She graduated from Redford High School. She received a BA in Psychology from the University of Michigan in 1944. While attending Michigan, she received a Hopwood Award for fiction. Shirley served in the U.S. Navy WAVES from November 1944 until August 1946 in Norfolk, VA. She then earned a Masters in English and a teaching certificate from Wayne State University. Shirley married Francis M. Daly Jr. on June 23, 1951. They lived in Detroit until 1955, Allen Park, MI from 1955 to1967, and moved to Ann Arbor in 1967. She loved children of all ages and had a long career in pre-school education, teaching in Allen Park, Southgate, and Detroit. She worked for five years with the Michigan Department of Human Services, inspecting day care centers. She ended her career at Ypsilanti High School, running the child care vocational program for five years. She was an editor of Offspring Magazine, the Magazine of the Michigan Council of Cooperative Nursery Schools for 12 years. Shirley is survived by her sons, Steven (Stephanie Gordon) of Piermont, NH and Brian of New Rochelle, NY; and her grandchildren, Maeve Daly of Ann Arbor, Jeremy Daly of Los Angeles, CA, and Rachel Hobbs and her husband, Kevin of Albuquerque, NM. She was predeceased by her husband, Francis in 2009, son, Robert (Laura Adamson-Daly-Myklebust) in 2000, and brothers, Robert and John. Shirley loved Lake Huron and spent as much time as possible at the cottage she and Frank built on the shores of Lake Huron outside of Rogers City, MI in 1964. She enjoyed the natural world, birds especially, and knew many birds by song as well as by sight. She loved flowers and gardened wherever she lived. Roses were her favorite flower to grow. She was passionate about classical music, opera, and playing the piano. She played publicly until the last years of her life. She played bridge regularly at the Ann Arbor City Club where she was a member for many years. She enjoyed the intellectual liveliness of the Ann Arbor Unitarian-Universalist Church where she was a long-time member. She assisted with the church bulletin and was on the Board for eight years. Shirley was always busy. She was smart, curious, held strong opinions and was a voracious reader. She was a generous and thoughtful wife, mother, mother-in-law, grandmother, and aunt. A memorial service will be held at the Ann Arbor Unitarian-Universalist Church at a later date. Contributions in her memory may be made to the Audubon Society, the Ann Arbor City Club, the Ann Arbor Unitarian-Universalist Church or the World Wildlife Fund. Please visit Shirley's personal webpage to share a memory at www.niefuneralhomes.com.